When jewellery brand Zoya unveiled its new collaboration with London-based designer Alice Cicolini a few weeks ago—with exquisite invites and a launch in Delhi—the intent was unmistakable. This wasn’t just the fanfare of partnering with an international name. It was a strategic move.

The Indian jewellery market is bursting with ideas, storytelling, and design innovation. From socio-cultural messaging, wokeism to Bollywood-focussed advertising and women-led cultural forums, this is a saturated and fiercely competitive space. Jewellery narratives are omnipresent—across luxury retail, high-decibel TV campaigns, print spreads, and social media feeds.

Cicolini, who Zoya—a Tata brand—refers to in all its official communication as “Alice”, includes India in her imaginative wonderland. Once the Head of Arts at the British Council posted here, nearly two decades ago, she had trained in film and theatre and then worked as a curator. She would go on to author books on British design before finding her creative voice in jewellery. Nudged by craftsmanship and detailing, and perhaps a keenness to link continents and epochs through design in precious metals.

The Zoya x Alice Cicolini collection has kadas, bali (hoops), necklaces and jhumkis among other expressions, crafted in 18 carat gold with meenakari (enamel), India’s age-old craft rooted in Rajasthani artisanship. Revathi Kant, chief design officer at Titan, calls it “a refreshing and imaginative take on uncut diamonds and enamel with gold.”

The collection references nineteenth-century traveller Alexandra David-Néel, who entered Lhasa “guided by wonder”. Cicolini channels her as muse. The jewellery evokes monasteries, sacred Tibetan architecture, cherry blossoms, Lhasa’s gongs using intricate meenakari in sage green (a very pale hue of blue), rose pink, and soft gold.

“When you are working with master craftsmen, there is an energy in their hands, in their work,” Alice Cicolini.

Incidentally, Cicolini’s work as a jewellery designer is as old as Zoya’s arrival in the Indian market—15 years. Will their synergy be a winner in this market whose love for the recession-proof metal, also a safe haven for investors, continues to grow? According to IBEF (Indian Brand Equity Foundation), the Indian gems and jewellery market, valued at ₹7,37,035 crore (US$ 85 billion) will reach ₹11,27,230 crore (US$ 130 billion) by 2030. It’s the value that speaks, perhaps above design. The global gold market is currently valued at $23 trillion, of which 15 per cent is held in India.

In this interview, Cicolini argues for narrative-led storytelling and how it fires other aspects linked with jewellery acquisition—heritage skills, artistry and colour, the soul of enamel.

Edited for length and clarity.

With so many effusive narratives built around jewellery in India, how can a brand or a collection stand out?

I am a storyteller who has always been excited by design and craftsmanship. From film and theatre to becoming a curator, and writing books about British design, storytelling fires me as a creative person. That’s what we are doing through this collection—trying to tell a fairly strong, clear story. We are talking about contemporarising traditional Indian jewellery motifs for a woman who lives a globalised, modern life. Without losing any of the poetry, the respect for the craft. My three Cs are colour, collaboration, and craftsmanship.

Why do you think there is a resurgence in narrative-led design?

Because women buying jewellery for themselves, especially those above 40 years of age, are looking for pieces that have meaning…that resonates with their energy. And if I can add, the differentiator for Zoya is the focus on the heroine’s journey, the inner journey. Not necessarily the external adventure. There is a seriousness in the pieces we have made which reflects authenticity rather than something purely driven by trend. I focused strongly on a unique design language because I have been lucky enough to understand that there are women out there who feel the same way and are excited by my design vision.

Does this seriousness as you call it contribute to the decision making process of a woman buying jewellery?

There are many layers. You have all the authenticity, the research, the commitment on Zoya’s side, and on my side—all of that, I think, you can feel in the work. Also, When you are working with master craftsmen, there is an energy in their hands, in their work. They put their passion into the piece. You feel that too. In India everybody believes that stones have energy. So, there is that layer on top. The core reason I got excited about working in fine jewellery is because it is something that will be in your life for a long time. It is not a disposable item. A woman who is making that kind of financial commitment is rarely spending money on something she will wear for three months.

What attracts you to Indian craftsmanship?

I come from a background of telling cultural stories. And craft is part of the cultural identity of this place, and of many places. Now we take all of that for granted. Even within the business, actually, I think. People assume that there are always going to be amazing craftsmen. Well, that’s not necessarily the case. If a father doesn’t pass the skill to his son, and that son doesn’t pass it to his son, that knowledge is gone. One of my driving motivations as a designer is to remind people why it matters to buy things from a family that has dedicated hundreds of years to learning how to do it. I believe these things are important for our soul, and for our cultural identity. There is a sacred and important spiritual quality to beauty that is critical.

You mention colour as one of your Cs. Is it linked to enamel?

Absolutely. When I first started working almost 16 years ago, nobody was working on enamel apart from British designer Solange Azagury-Partridge. James de Givenchy started not long after me, and then there was the late Holly Dyment who worked in a non-traditional way but also from India. Just a few of us. Now enamel is one of the biggest trends in jewellery. The enamellers I work with in London are hiring young apprentices for the first time in decades. My enameller in Jaipur, Kamal Aswat, wants to bring his daughters into the business, send them off to Europe. He is fired up about the potential for his business and growth. He is not just making versions of my work but selling his gorgeous, traditional Meenakari enamel to people all over the world.

And then there is a whole layer of innovation into enamel as a technique that would not have happened if we had not reminded people of why it was a great part of the jewellery heritage. In the work that Kamal and I are doing together at Zoya, colour is one of the really big shifts. We have done a lot of experimentation for almost two years to get the colours right. Like Josef Albers (twentieth-century abstract painter and educator) once said, it is easy to work with two colours, but to work with four—now that’s really complicated.